Skip to Content
Biotechnology and health

The 5 Smartest Companies Analyzing Your DNA

These companies are leading the charge in consumer and medical genetics.
August 7, 2017

As gene sequencing technology gets faster and cheaper, companies are finding more ways to commercialize DNA, from offering disease-specific genetic tests and whole-genome sequencing to portable sequencers that allow you analyze genetic data anywhere. Five standouts made our list of the 50 Smartest Companies.

23andMe

23andMe first debuted direct-to-consumer tests meant to predict disease in 2013, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration quickly clamped down on that and told the company to stop marketing the tests, saying they could be inaccurate and confusing to consumers. But the company was vindicated earlier this year when the FDA revised that decision, declaring 23andMe could sell tests that estimate customers’ risk of certain disease, as long as they don’t purport to diagnose any disease.  

Read more

Illumina

Early this year, Illumina, the manufacturer of most of the world’s DNA sequencers, unveiled its newest, most efficient machine, NovaSeq, which can sequence as many as 48 entire human genomes in two and a half days, according to the company. Illumina claims the ultra-fast machine will usher in the $100 genome and will open the door for researchers to cheaply sequence DNA in search of rare genetic variants that cause disease.

Read more

Oxford Nanopore

Twelve years in the making, Oxford Nanopore’s handheld DNA sequencer is living up to its promise to decode DNA anywhere, on the spot. Called the MinION, the portable sequencer has traveled the world, from the forests of West Africa to northeastern Brazil, to analyze the genetic makeup of the Ebola and Zika viruses. It’s been blasted up to the International Space Station and has visited Antarctica to study pathogens living in extreme environments. The $1,000 device is being used for on-the-spot diagnostic testing, germ monitoring, and more.

Read more

Sophia Genetics

Sophia Genetics is taking a big-data approach to DNA. The Swiss company is using AI algorithms to continuously learn from thousands of patients’ genomic data. Partnering hospitals take patient samples and run them through a DNA sequencer. The Sophia system sifts through that genetic information to identify mutations in a patient’s genome. The company says its technology is helping to quickly and more accurately diagnose conditions like cancer, metabolic disorders, and heart disease. To date, more than 100,000 patients have been tested with Sophia’s system.

Read more

Veritas Genetics

Veritas Genetics will determine a complete readout of your genetic code for just $1,000. The technique, called whole-genome sequencing, previously could only be ordered by a doctor. So far, whole-genome sequencing has mostly been used in tough patient cases, providing a diagnosis to a previously unknown disease, for example. But Veritas is betting on the idea that healthy people want to know all about their DNA, too. The company even started offering sequencing for newborns in China this year.

Read more

Deep Dive

Biotechnology and health

Scientists are finding signals of long covid in blood. They could lead to new treatments.

Faults in a certain part of the immune system might be at the root of some long covid cases, new research suggests.

This baby with a head camera helped teach an AI how kids learn language

A neural network trained on the experiences of a single young child managed to learn one of the core components of language: how to match words to the objects they represent.

The next generation of mRNA vaccines is on its way

Adding a photocopier gene to mRNA vaccines could make them last longer and curb side effects.

Ready, set, grow: These are the biotech plants you can buy now

For $73, I bought genetically modified tomato seeds and a glowing petunia.

Stay connected

Illustration by Rose Wong

Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review

Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.

Thank you for submitting your email!

Explore more newsletters

It looks like something went wrong.

We’re having trouble saving your preferences. Try refreshing this page and updating them one more time. If you continue to get this message, reach out to us at customer-service@technologyreview.com with a list of newsletters you’d like to receive.